Monday, August 30, 2010

I will be sitting-in for John Batchelor on Tuesday and Wednesday (6-10 p.m., Pacific) this week as John takes a well-deserved vacation. I'll be discussing the news of the day and playing some of John's "Best Of" interviews. You can check local listings or John's website for details.

On Thursday morning (8 a.m., Pacific), I'll join Brian Sussman, Officer Vic and Sheri Yee for another edition of KSFO-AM 560's Morning Show with Brian Sussman. We'll be dissecting the issues of the day, having some fun and trying to help commuters make their way around the Bay Area. You can listen at 560 AM or via KSFO's website.

Here's an overhead photo of the Tea Party/"8/28" rally in Washington, D.C., today. Original guess-timates were that the event would only draw about 100,000 to the National Mall. The latest word from the U.S. Park Service is that more than 300,000 are participating. Other sources have the figure pegged at more than 500,000.

If I was an incumbent - of either party - I would look at this and worry. Come November, these folks' Hope® will likely become Change™...

AP Standards Center issues staff advisory on covering New York City mosque

Associated Press Deputy Managing Editor for Standards and Production Tom Kent sent the following note to the staff about covering the New York City mosque story:

Aug. 19, 2010

Colleagues,

Here is some guidance on covering the NYC mosque story, with assists from Chad Roedemeier in the NYC bureau and Terry Hunt in Washington:

1. We should continue to avoid the phrase “ground zero mosque” or “mosque at ground zero” on all platforms. (We’ve very rarely used this wording, except in slugs, though we sometimes see other news sources using the term.) The site of the proposed Islamic center and mosque is not at ground zero, but two blocks away in a busy commercial area. We should continue to say it’s “near” ground zero, or two blocks away.

WE WILL CHANGE OUR SLUG ON THIS STORY LATER TODAY from “BC-Ground Zero Mosque” to “BC-NYC Mosque.”

We can refer to the project as a mosque, or as a proposed Islamic center that includes a mosque.

It may be useful in some stories to note that Muslim prayer services have been held since 2009 in the building that the new project will replace. The proposal is to create a new, larger Islamic community center that would include a mosque, a swimming pool, gym, auditorium and other facilities.

2. Here is a succinct summary of President Obama’s position:

Obama has said he believes Muslims have the right to build an Islamic center in New York as a matter of religious freedom, though he’s also said he won’t take a position on whether they should actually build it.

For additional background, you’ll find below a Fact Check on the project that moved yesterday.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Earlier today, David Goodman - my colleague/producer-engineer on the John Batchelor Show, scored a major coup with his interview of former Vermont Gov./Democratic presidential candidate/Dem party chieftain, Dr. Howard Dean.

Mind you, it's not hard to get Dean to talk. Give him a soapbox and this guy can make the guys from the Lincoln-Douglas debates look like pikers. So an interview with Dean ain't that big of a deal.

But Goodman, the host of WABC-AM 77's "Goodman to Go," scored because he asked the right question at the right time. He asked Dean what he thought of the current controversy over the Cordoba House mosque/facility at Ground Zero.

Here's what Dean said:

Dean called the Cordoba plan "a real affront to people who lost their lives" and he rightfully called for a compromise.

Looking south from the Empire State Building, pre-9/11...

As Dean points out, this isn't about trying to quash Islam in any way. This is about asking the mosque proponents to compromise...to be sensitive...to think about what Ground Zero means.

Forget the politics, people trying to pour salt into a collective wound or even the right of the project's proponents to build the Cordoba House at Ground Zero. (And yes, because the structure that will house the Cordoba House was damaged by wreckage from the a plane that hit the World Trade Center it is at Ground Zero...)

Let's ask the victims, the survivors, the family members left behind and the eyewitnesses to the horrors of September 11, 2001, what they think of the idea...

And after that racial epithet, Harry doubles down! Which brings us to The Number one quote from the Harry Reid super gaffe-o-matic 76 machine: Harry stands up for diversity and freedom of choice: “I don’t know how anyone of Hispanic heritage could be a Republican. Do I need to say more?”

Saturday, August 14, 2010

In the middle of this severe economic downturn, perhaps no interest group is complaining about budget cuts more loudly than that connected to public education (at all levels).

A source in Arizona shares this bit of information with me about the public school (community college) system there. Because that person is a state employee and concerned that flagging this could result in job problems, I'm keeping the source anonymous.

Singing Cowboys, 101...

"If you think that the Arizona education system has been shortchanged by recent budget cuts, how do you explain the plethora of ridiculous courses they're offering this fall at our community colleges? - How to be a Blackjack Winner; The Hollywood Singing Cowboy From Real to Reel; More Hollywood Singing Cowboys; Concealed Weapons; Know Yourself... I could go on and on. [Another example,] Celebrate Your Life: For the Mature Woman. You're supposed to wear loose fitting clothing and bring a mat to lay on. Go figure."

Friday, August 13, 2010

Earlier today, the Orange County Register (a newspaper I actually "threw" back in the early '70s as a substitute paperboy) broke a story that could have significant impact on California's gubernatorial race between current state Attorney General/former two-term Gov. Jerry Brown (D) and former eBay CEO Meg Whitman (R).

California, which is drowning in debt (some say as much as $600 billion-plus when all unfunded liabilities are counted) is coming apart at the seams. One of the largest aspects of those liabilities is the ever-growing mountain of obligations to state employee pensions.

As public resentment has grown and become more vociferous, the opportunity to capitalize on citizens' collective anger has not been lost on politicians. Notably, Brown - never one to pass up a good photo opp or media dog-and-pony show - has come out in recent weeks as standing foursquare against the problem. As the public's awareness of the Bell scandal and the burdensome pension schemes has increased, so has Brown's campaigning (on it) - despite the fact that he as former governor helped enable the system now destroying the Golden State.

Until today...

Thanks to the OC Register's Sacramento correspondent, Brian Joseph, California voters now know that Brown not only feels their pain when it comes to these pensions but he also has enjoyed cashing pension checks. Brown as a lifelong public employee, has collected a pension. This isn't hard to imagine since he's been Secretary of State as well as Governor (and now Attorney General).

According to Joseph, writing in the paper's Watchdog blog, "Campaign spokesman Sterling Clifford did tell the Watchdog that Brown started receiving an annual pension of about $20,000 when he turned 60 in 1998 and pocketed it every year until he assumed the attorney general’s office, when it was suspended. That means Brown’s received a pension on top of his $115,000 salary as Oakland mayor [prior to serving as AG]."

One of the questions surrounding all this has to do with time. Brown's pension (and, by the way, it appears he was double-dipping) appears to be significant: about $110,580 annually, which is what someone who has been a member of the select Legislators’ Retirement System(LRS)receives if they've been part of the system for a period between 25-29 years. The problem is that Brown, after he has completed his latest term as AG, will have only served a total of 16 years (which is only$73,720 annually). Quite a difference and until we all started hearing about this today, Brown didn't seem to be doing much - and certainly not doing much - about the crucial 9-year discrepancy (a discrepancy that could be worth hundreds and hundreds of extra dollars).

The other question connected to this problem for Brown is that the LRS is somewhat of a secret. Only a few select state employees are eligible and the system, which voters typically think they dismantled with Proposition 140 back in 1990, still pays out...handsomely. (Read the story for more information.)

Brown's team, however, doesn't seem to get how bad these latest revelations could be for "Governor Moonbeam," who has made a career out of appearing frugal.

In an email to Joseph, Brown spokesman Clifford wrote, "He concluded his brief email with this reminder: “And of course if you are worried about paying out Jerry’s pension, the best thing to do is elect him Governor so he doesn’t collect it.”

In these tough economic times, much due to the incompetence, willful negligence and criminality of public officials, that's probably not a message that will resonate with a large number of voters.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

On Friday, as news was breaking on Hewlett-Packard CEO Mark Hurd's abrupt departure from the world's largest electronics company, I joined John Batchelor and NY Times reporter Ashlee Vance on John's show to begin unraveling this shocker story. (You can hear the podcast here.) So shocking, that the seismic waves crossed Silicon Valley, hit Wall Street before closing and traveled 'round the world in an eyeblink (causing HP's stock to drop close to 10 percent).

Mark Hurd, former HP CEO...

The big question was all about the "why?" Originally, it was said to have been born out of a sexual harassment investigation but HP said it found no evidence to support that claim. In the course of searching for facts, however, it was discovered that other improprieties had taken place/occurred. HP's board confronted Hurd and he stepped down (receiving more than $20 million in parting cash in the process).

Today we learn who it was he was accused of harassing (then cleared) and then, reportedly, conducting improper business with or because of...

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, "The woman who accused HP CEO Mark Hurd of sexual harassment and got him sacked has come forward and said she's sorry he got canned. [Jodie Fisher] also said--as he has--that they didn't have sex (or any other form of intimate relationship). Which begs the question: What exactly did he do that made her sue him for sexual harassment? In any event, she's in her early 50s now and works as a business consultant. When she was in her 30s, she was an actress and appeared in some crappy movies."

The questions remain: what will become of HP, which had been recovering nicely after the departure of former CEO Carly Fiorina? Can the interim leadership and next CEO help keep HP growing and profitable? How will one man's departure from one of Silicon Valley's top companies impact the tech sector, not to mention the overall economy?

Upcoming appearances...

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